Understanding Your Duty to Prevent Sexual Harassment at Work
Sexual harassment in the workplace has long been recognised as a serious issue. In response, on 26th October 2024, the UK government introduced new legal obligations designed to strengthen employer responsibilities and protect employees. The Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act 2010) Act 2023 places a clear duty on employers to take proactive steps to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace. Here’s what SME owners need to know about this important update and how to comply.
What is the Duty?
Updated legislation requires employers to actively prevent sexual harassment occurring during the course of employment. Sexual harassment itself is defined under the Equality Act 2010 as any unwanted conduct of a sexual nature that either violates a person’s dignity or creates an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating, or offensive working environment.
Importantly, this duty is preventative meaning businesses cannot wait for incidents to happen before taking action. Instead, they must put reasonable measures in place to stop harassment from arising in the first place.
Failure to meet this obligation has serious consequences. The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) can investigate organisations that fall short and has enforcement powers to ensure compliance. While failure to prevent harassment does not automatically lead to standalone tribunal claims, employment tribunals can consider such failures when assessing compensation in successful discrimination cases potentially increasing awards by up to 25%. This makes taking preventative steps a priority for all employers.
What steps should employers take to comply?
To meet the duty, employers should start by carrying out a risk assessment to understand where harassment is most likely to occur, who might be involved, and what practical steps could reduce those risks. The appropriate measures will differ depending on factors like the size of the business, sector, working conditions, and interactions with third parties such as clients or contractors.
In September 2024, the EHRC released updated technical guidance and an eight-step framework to help employers meet their obligations effectively. Key recommendations include:
Developing a clear, effective anti-harassment policy that everyone understands.
Engaging with employees regularly through one-to-one meetings, surveys, and exit interviews to gather feedback and spot issues early.
Identifying and addressing risk areas in the workplace environment and working practices.
Implementing robust reporting procedures and encouraging employees to speak up without fear.
Providing ongoing sexual harassment training for all staff, with additional focused training for managers on handling complaints sensitively and appropriately.
Responding promptly and thoroughly to complaints, respecting how the complainant wishes to proceed, and ensuring a fair investigation.
Establishing processes to manage harassment from third parties, such as customers or suppliers.
Monitoring and reviewing the effectiveness of measures regularly, making adjustments as needed.
Sector-specific guidance and practical resources
The EHRC has also produced tailored guidance for specific industries, such as hospitality, which includes useful checklists, action plans, and monitoring tools. While designed for that sector, many of these resources can be adapted to suit other businesses. They cover three main areas of focus:
Communicating a zero tolerance stance on sexual harassment clearly to all staff.
Creating a safe work environment through practical changes.
Reviewing and updating working practices, policies, and procedures.
Actions are suggested for different points in the working day before, during, and after shifts to maintain ongoing safety and awareness.
Building a positive workplace culture
Beyond policies and procedures, the most effective prevention comes from fostering a workplace culture where respectful behaviour is the norm and harassment is not tolerated. This means:
Leaders visibly supporting and modelling respectful conduct.
Encouraging bystander intervention to empower employees to speak up safely.
Creating employee resource groups or inclusion networks that offer support and advocacy.
Running regular surveys or pulse checks to assess the workplace climate.
Offering wellbeing programmes to support employees’ mental and emotional health.
By embedding these principles, businesses not only reduce the risk of harassment but create a more inclusive, positive environment.
Protecting your team and your business
This legislation has been in place since October 2024, so if your business has not yet taken action to comply, it’s crucial to prioritise this now. Delaying increases the risk of incidents occurring, along with significant legal and financial consequences. Taking proactive steps protects your employees and helps safeguard your business reputation, while fostering a positive and respectful workplace culture.
Developing in-house training can be complex, but our partner Breathe offers accessible e-learning modules on sexual harassment prevention that make it easier to keep your team informed and compliant with the latest requirements.
If you’d like guidance on risk assessments, policy development, or how to incorporate practical e-learning tools, Regent HR is ready to support you in making your HR simple, effective, and business-ready.